Tips for writing a great press release

Tips for writing a great press release

A press release is a written announcement for media about a news items, events, personnel promotions, awards, new products and services, accomplishments etc. Press Releases are written for media journalists who would be publishing news about the matter presented in the press release to the directed audience. Press releases are an essential element of any public relations strategy. Press releases not only keep the media and the industry informed about your recent developments, events, accomplishments, events etc., but drafting a great press release is often the first step towards securing a magazine feature or television interview.

We’ll tell you about the features of a good Press release and tips to write a good press release:-

Write a genuine and relevant headline which is brief, clear and focusing in the key-point of the press release. The headline is the eye catcher and is very important for the whole release.

The subject line should be catchy and straight to the point. A valid subject line is crucial. A PR with subject line which is bad and misleading will be rejected instantly.

Writing the body

Start with date and city in which the press release originate

The lead statement or the first sentence should be able to attract reader’s attention and should concisely say what it is about.

The body should be compact, concise, short and simple as possible. Avoid using very long sentences and paragraphs. Avoid repetition and overuse of fancy language, slangs and jargons.

First paragraph should sum up the objective of the press release. The rest of the content must elaborate it. The journalists and the readers would probably not read the entire press release if the start of the press release fails to generate the interest of the readers.

Provide actual facts, targets, goals, plans and make maximum use of concrete facts to make the press release as impacting as possible.

The information should be easy to find. Press Releases that present relevant information upfront are appreciated. Use bullet point wherever possible to present relevant information.

Make sure you specify who, what, when, where, why and how within the PR. These should tell the readers everything they need to know. The more information in the press release, the more newsworthy it would be and the better would be the chances for it to be picked by the journalists for reporting.

The contact Information about the key people should be complete andaccurate so that when the press release is picked for reporting, the journalist can contact and interview the key people associate with it.

Mark the end of press release with three # (hash) symbols centered directly underneath the last line of the release which is a journalistic standard.

Do’s

The press release should always be from the company/individual/group etc., submitting the news.

Press releases should be written in third person.

Press release should always have a legitimate point of writing and publishing a news announcement.

The headline and summary should always reflect the news angle i.e. the objective of writing the press release.

Avoid using too many URLs in a single release as doing so would be considered ‘spam’. A good rule is to not include more than 1 URL for every 150 words of text.